Scoopfeeds — Intelligent news, curated.
Antidepressants and antipsychotics could serve as alternatives to opioids, study finds
top

Antidepressants and antipsychotics could serve as alternatives to opioids, study finds

The Guardian · Jun 14, 2026, 12:00 PM · Also reported by 4 other sources

Key takeaways

  • The study examined common pain medications like acetaminophen and ibuprofen, but also the promise of other drugs like ketamine and antipsychotics for pain relief.
  • Prefer the Guardian on GoogleA range of other medications could serve as alternatives to powerful opioids for pain relief in emergency departments, according to a new study.
  • The review paper examined non-opioid medications available in the emergency department at San Francisco general hospital and examined existing medical literature to figure out which ones might provide pain relief.

Why this matters: a developing story that could shape the day's news cycle.

The study examined common pain medications like acetaminophen and ibuprofen, but also the promise of other drugs like ketamine and antipsychotics for pain relief. Photograph: Westend61/Getty Images View image in fullscreen. The study examined common pain medications like acetaminophen and ibuprofen, but also the promise of other drugs like ketamine and antipsychotics for pain relief. Photograph: Westend61/Getty Images Opioids Antidepressants and antipsychotics could serve as alternatives to opioids, study findsMedications that target depression, anxiety and poor sleep could help treat pain without opioids’ addictive properties

Prefer the Guardian on GoogleA range of other medications could serve as alternatives to powerful opioids for pain relief in emergency departments, according to a new study.

The review paper examined non-opioid medications available in the emergency department at San Francisco general hospital and examined existing medical literature to figure out which ones might provide pain relief.

Article preview — originally published by The Guardian. Full story at the source.
Read full story on The Guardian → More top stories

Also covered by

Aggregated and edited by the Scoop newsroom. We surface news from The Guardian alongside other reporting so you can compare coverage in one place. Editorial policy · Corrections · About Scoop